DOSKEY is a memory-resident program that was first available in DOS 5.0. This program enables you to easily edit what you enter at the DOS prompt. DOSKEY also maintains a running history of the commands you have entered. DOSKEY then enables you to reuse those commands without retyping them.

Before you can use DOSKEY's features, you must load the program into memory. To load DOSKEY, enter the following command at the DOS prompt:

DOSKEY

A message appears onscreen, telling you that DOSKEY is installed. After this message appears, all DOSKEY features are available.

As is true of most DOS commands, DOSKEY has several available switches. The full syntax of the command to install DOSKEY is as follows:

DOSKEY /REINSTALL /BUFSIZE=size /MACROS /HISTORY /INSERT /OVERSTRIKE

Following are explanations of the components of this command:

Even before you load DOSKEY, DOS provides some command-line editing capability. Table 18.1 lists the normal DOS command-line editing keys, which are available if DOSKEY is not memory-resident.

A primary purpose of DOSKEY is to facilitate editing of DOS commands. If you are a typical PC user, you issue the same or similar commands frequently, and you don't always type each command correctly the first time. DOSKEY can save you typing by enabling you to edit commands without typing them from scratch every time you notice an error.

Suppose that you want to see a directory listing of all files with the .WQ1 extension in the SPREADSHQPRO2DAT directory in drive C. In haste, however, you type the DIR command as follows:

DOR C:SPREADSHQPRO2DAT*.WQ1

Before you press Enter, you realize that you mistyped the DIR command, but you don't want to retype it. When DOSKEY is loaded, you can use the following procedure to correct the mistake:

DOS displays the directory listing as you requested.

The keys listed in Table 18.2 supplement the normal DOSKEY command-line editing keys.

In addition to enhancing DOS's command-line editing capabilities, DOSKEY adds a capability that was not previously available in DOS: You can redisplay a command that you issued earlier during the current DOS session. You then can execute the command without changing it, or you can use the DOS and DOSKEY editing keys to make modifications before executing the command.

After you load DOSKEY into memory, the program maintains a buffer in memory that contains a history of DOS commands issued at the command prompt during the current DOS session. DOSKEY enables you to reuse the commands in this command-history buffer.

Suppose that earlier during the current DOS session, you issued the following COPY command:

COPY C:DATABASEFOXPROMAIL.DBF C:WORDPROWP

Now you want to issue the following similar command without retyping the entire command:

COPY C:DATABASEDBASEMAIL.DBF C:WORDPROWP

To edit the earlier command, follow these steps:

In addition to the up-arrow key, DOSKEY provides the keys listed in Table 18.3 for use in retrieving commands from the command-history buffer.

To view the entire list of commands currently stored in the command-history buffer, press F7. DOSKEY lists all commands contained in the buffer, one on each line, with a number at the left end of each line. The oldest command—the command issued earliest in the current DOS session—is number one. Subsequent commands are listed in the order in which you issued them.

DOSKEY provides another way for you to see the entire list of commands in the command-history buffer. Type the following command and then press Enter:

DOSKEY /HISTORY

DOSKEY generates the same list of commands as the F7 command, but without line numbers.

To create a batch file that contains all the commands in the current command-history buffer, use the following command syntax:

DOSKEY /HISTORY > filename.BAT

Substitute for filename the name that you want to give the batch file. After you issue this command, the new batch file contains all the commands from the command-history buffer, including the command that created the batch file itself. Use the DOS Editor, Edlin, or some other text editor to delete the last command and any other commands you don't want to include in the batch file.

You can use the up-arrow key to display previously issued commands. Each time you press the up-arrow key, DOSKEY displays the preceding command. After you display one or more previous commands by pressing the up-arrow key, you can use the down-arrow key to move back down through the commands to the most recent command. Sometimes, however, selecting a command from the list generated by pressing F7 is easier. To use this method, press F9. DOSKEY displays the following message:

Line number:

Type the number that corresponds to the desired command in the list of commands generated by pressing F7. DOSKEY displays the selected command in the command line for you to edit or execute.

When you want to move quickly to the first command in the buffer, press PgUp. To go to the last command in the buffer, press PgDn.

If you want to clear the command-history buffer, press Alt+F7. DOSKEY abandons the contents of the command-history buffer.

DOSKEY also can help you locate a command quickly. Type the first several characters of the command you need to find and then press F8. Suppose that you want to locate the following command:

COPY C:DATABASEFOXPROMAIL.DBF C:WORDPROWP

Type COPY and press F8. Each time you press F8, DOSKEY shows you the next command that contains the COPY command. When the desired command is displayed, you easily can edit and reuse the command with minimal typing.

DOSKEY enables you to create macros at the command line or through a batch file. The syntax for creating a macro is as follows:

DOSKEY macroname=command(s)

The macroname parameter is the name that you want to give the macro. Use any keyboard characters in the name except <, >, |, or =. Do not include a space in the macro name; use an underscore or hyphen instead if you want the macro name to have the appearance of two words.

The command parameter can include any number of DOS commands, subject to the following rules:

You can use several special characters when defining your macros. They are shown in Table 18.4.

Notice that when you want to use replaceable parameters in a macro, you use the codes $1 through $9 rather than %1 through %9. Suppose, for example, that you often use the REPLACE command to keep current copies of particular subdirectory files on floppy disks so that you can take the files with you. To do so, however, you must issue the REPLACE command twice for each subdirectory you want to keep current. An easier method is to create the following macro called UPD:

DOSKEY UPD=REPLACE C:$1$2 A:$1 /U $T REPLACE C:$1$2 A:$1 /A

In this example, you also see how the $T (or $t) special characters separate commands on the command line.

DOSKEY has a special type of replaceable parameter that is not available in batch files. The characters $* represent not just one parameter, but all the characters you type in the command line to the right of the macro name. This type of replaceable parameter is useful when you don't know ahead of time how many parameters or switches you might type when you execute the macro.

Suppose, for example, that you want to create a macro to help format floppy disks in drive A, a 3 1/2-inch, high-density drive. You want to be able to type FA 720 to format a 720KB disk and FA 1.44 to format a 1.44MB disk. Occasionally, however, you might want to use one or more of FORMAT's switches, such as the /S switch to create a system disk, the /Q Quick Format switch, or the /U unconditional format switch. To create the FA macro, you type the following command:

DOSKEY FA=FORMAT A: /F:$*

To confirm that DOSKEY has stored the macros you defined, you type the following command and then press Enter:

DOSKEY /MACROS

DOSKEY lists all macros currently stored in the DOSKEY macro buffer. Assuming you defined the UPD and FA macros, the preceding command displays the following lines:

UPD=REPLACE C:$1$2 A:$1 /U $T REPLACE C:$1$2 A:$1 /A
FA=FORMAT A: /F:$*

You can easily save a copy of the entire contents of the macro buffer by using redirection. To create a file named MACROS.BAT that contains all the current macros, you type the following command and press Enter:

DOSKEY /MACROS > MACROS.BAT

If you want to use this batch file later to re-create the macros during a future session, edit the file, adding DOSKEY to the beginning of each line.

Because DOSKEY macros reside in memory rather than on disk, all macros are erased when you turn off or reboot the computer. One disadvantage of using DOSKEY macros is that you need to reenter commonly used macros each time you turn on your computer. You can overcome this drawback, however, by using AUTOEXEC.BAT to define the macros that you use most often. To make the UPD and FA macros routinely available, for example, include the following commands in AUTOEXEC.BAT:

DOSKEY UPD=REPLACE C:$1$2 A:$1 /U $T REPLACE C:$1$2 A:$1 /A
DOSKEY FA=FORMAT A: /F:$*

Every time you turn on or reboot your computer, the preceding commands create the UPD and FA macros in the DOSKEY macro buffer.

Using a DOSKEY macro is as easy as using any other DOS command. Simply type the macro name at the command line and then press Enter. If the macro has any replaceable parameters, include appropriate values in the command line. Suppose, for example, that you want to use the UPD macro to maintain current copies of files. To do so, just type the following:

UPD dirname filespec

As with a batch file, dirname is the first replaceable parameter, $1, and filespec is the second, $2. To keep current all files in C:PROJECT1, type the following at the DOS prompt:

UPD PROJECT1 *.*

Perhaps you want to use the FA macro created in the preceding section to format a 1.44MB disk. You want to use Quick Format, make this disk bootable, and assign the volume label BOOT_DISK. You type the following command at the DOS prompt and then press Enter:

FA 1.44 /Q /S /V:BOOT_DISK

DOS first displays the command in the following format:

FORMAT A: /F:1.44 /Q /S /V:BOOT_DISK

Then DOS prompts you as follows:

Insert new diskette for drive A:
and press ENTER when ready_

Press Enter to proceed with the formatting operation. DOS displays messages indicating the progress and successful completion of the procedure. Finally, DOS displays the following message:

QuickFormat another (Y/N)?

Press Y if you want to use the same switch settings to format another disk or press N to return to the DOS prompt.

You can remove a macro from memory simply by putting nothing to the right of the equal sign when you define the macro. Assume, for example, that you no longer need the FA macro defined earlier. To remove it from memory—thereby freeing more space for other macros—type the following at the DOS prompt:

DOSKEY FA=